MOTORSPORT: Lotus looking to Mercedes power

The Enstone-based team is in the final stages of agreeing a deal to switch to the German manufacturer from Renault.

Mercedes have the dominant engine this season, with a significant performance advantage over the rival units from Renault and Ferrari.

Renault has undergone a management reshuffle after its disappointing performance.

McLaren’s switch to Honda engines from next season has freed up a supply, and Lotus has walked away from the three-year contract with Ren-ault, signed at the start of the season, in the hope of better performance.

Meanwhile, Lotus’s wret-ched season continued as they again finished out of the points in Sunday’s British Grand Prix at Silverstone.